Character Sketch: Q
by jsk
Summary: Character Sketch: Q


Immortal. Infinite. Endless. That was Q. He yawned and the galaxies  
trembled. He had tremendous power. Tremendous knowledge. He had the  
gift of the Q. He stretched his arms and rolled over -- new worlds were  
born. He finally decided to tumble out of his celestial bed and *do*  
something. The Q continuum had existed for countless eons of time, ever  
since the Creator had endowed them with their unique gift.  
  
Q rubbed his eyes and blinked, and the financial centers of Ferengenar  
collapsed.  
  
"What shall I do now?" thought Q. He was already bored. It was a dreary  
existence. He had lost the initial thrill of being so powerful. Life for  
him was simply one perverse pleasure after another now. To alleviate his  
boredom he had taken to toying with the lesser species, torturing them if  
that is what they feared, putting them on trial, making them squeal. It  
was a small perverse delight. But it occupied him for a while. But in  
time, even those twisted games were no longer sufficient. It had been so  
long, he even considered ending his Q-life. But that was expressly  
forbidden. For, even as the lower lifeforms, Q did have to follow rules,  
Q was also bound by laws and tenets. And so, no Q had ever committed  
suicide.  
  
Q was beginning to feel the stagnant dread of boredom closing in on him.  
He whisked himself away in an instant.  
"Maybe I'll pay a visit to my old friend, Jean-Luc," he thought. Humans.  
A very limited and plodding species. So frail, so apelike, so young.  
They hardly knew anything about the vast Universe. And here they were, so  
arrogantly building space-faring ships and charting the farthest reaches  
of space that their small ships allowed them to reach. They were bound by  
one simple physical form, a weak body susceptible to any number of  
diseases, very easily damaged, very easily killed. And they had no idea.  
No idea of the dangers that lurked in space. Dangers like Q, thought Q,  
as he chuckled. And a hailstorm fell on a nearby world.  
  
Humans. They were bound by their petty feelings and emotions. And they  
had this primitive and disgusting need to procreate, to reproduce, to join  
flesh with flesh and *mate*. Q shuddered at the gross thought, and the  
stars shimmered.  
  
Where was Jean-Luc? On the bridge. Of course, what a loyal and  
upstanding Captain. What were they doing now? Attempting to help some  
avalanche victims on a Federation colony. Ah, how noble. The gallant  
Jean-Luc Picard, always coming to the rescue. Q decided to drop in. What  
would suit him best this time. Admiral's uniform? Perhaps Captain's ...  
for a little camaraderie between ranking officers. In the end he chose  
the Admiral's dress.  
"Q!" Picard was positively enraged. "What the hell are you doing on my  
bridge?"  
"Now now Jean-Luc, is that any way to greet an old friend?" Q smiled  
inwardly. Jean-Luc may appear to be incensed, he thought, but he is  
really glad to see me.  
  
Besides, what was it about these humans? This limited species. These,  
these, flesh-borne creatures that were so vile and disgusting. The Q  
continuum had noticed something about them. Something that the Q lacked.  
It was a need, a desire, a compulsion. Jean-Luc had it. Riker had it.  
They all had it. But it was a gift not granted to the Q. And as they had  
looked into the future, they saw that the Humans would progress, would  
*grow*, would fulfill their true potential, and not remain the apelike  
creatures they now appeared to be.  
  
This worried the Q.  
  
If the Human's reached the level of the Q, and evolved beyond that, well  
then, the Q would no longer be the sole Infinite Beings in the Universe.  
And besides that, they would be susceptible to attack, and enslavement.  
This thought was unsettling to them. And so they needed to understand  
this small, young, species. Early in their development. What was this  
need, this compulsion, this burning desire that the humans had, to  
explore, to learn, to better themselves, to seek out new lifeforms, and  
new civilizations, to boldly go where no one had gone before. Why? Who  
cared? Q had seen it all, it was hardly worth mentioning. They would  
probably all just catch Telarian Flu and die. What was the point? Why not  
simply sit on Earth and indulge in their pleasures and live their small  
puny lives? Why did they have to go into the unknown? What was it they  
were looking for?  
  
And so, here he was, with Jean-Luc once again. His assignment. His fond  
assigment. Jean-Luc had that quality, that elusive drive that the Q  
lacked. And Q must know, how he may have it as well. For their very  
survival depended on it.  
  



End file.
